Antornac route

Espace Matisse car park, 196 Rue du Général de Gaulle, Soyaux.

Blue signposting

(S/E) Head towards the back of Espace Matisse and enter the woods on the left. Turn immediately right, then straight ahead at the intersection with Rue du 11 Novembre 1918 and continue through the peaceful undergrowth, accompanied by birdsong. Join a forest path.

(1) Continue to the right until you reach the next large crossroads. Turn right onto Chemin du Bois du Lac. You will come to a wooden barrier.

(2) Go through it, cross Rue de Bois Menu and continue straight ahead on the path between the houses. Further on, cross Rue de L'Isle d'Espagnac and follow the small path slightly to the left. This path descends towards the ring road, which you will follow for 200 metres on the right. You will reach the tunnel under the ring road.

(3) Immediately turn left and pass under the bridge. Continue along Route d'Antornac, then immediately turn left onto the path at the edge of the woods. Enter the woods on the right and you will come to the Chemin de Recoux crossroads.

(4) Turn left onto the road and immediately take Chemin de Recoux, which goes around the hamlet. Leave it at the third bend and take the path that descends steeply into the Font Noire valley.

(5) Turn left onto this path, noting the private fountain on your right and the orchard and educational apiary on your left. Leave the road and take the path on the right that crosses the allotments and climbs towards the woods. Pass the climbing site on your right and continue straight on to the village of Antornac.

(6) Take Rue des Groies on the left at the entrance to Antornac. At the end, turn right onto Chemin du Petit Rochefort and continue to the junction with Route de Bussac.

(7) Turn left onto it, then at the village exit, just before the playground and picnic area, follow the road to the right, which quickly becomes a path. You will arrive at a crossroads on the edge of the woods.

(8) Turn right onto the pretty path lined with low walls that runs alongside the fields. At the intersection, follow the path downhill to the right. Ignore the path that branches off to the left at the bottom and head back up to the village via the path opposite. You will reach the junction with Route de Boussac.

(7) Turn left twice to pass under the Porte Saint-Martial, then left twice again. At the intersection, leave Rue de la Croix and turn right. Go through the gate and descend, taking care here as the path can be wet in heavy rain.
Reach a four-way crossroads, turn left, off the route, the fountain is located further on at the foot of a magnificent poplar tree in the welcome shade of the woods.
Ignore the two paths on the right and go up to the left along the path that leads to the Logis de Montboulard.

(9) Go around it on the right and arrive at the ring road, follow it. Go through the tunnel and return to the crossroads you passed on the way there.

(3) Turn left immediately before the houses and continue for a few hundred metres until you reach a crossroads. Take the path on the right. You will come out at the entrance to the old village, Rue d'Antornac. Follow this road and you will see the Jardin du Vieux Bourg - Bodinaud on your right. Stay on this street until you reach the very sober Saint-Matthieu church surrounded by beautiful houses.
Continue along Rue de l'Église on the left. Turn right in front of the cross. Cross Rue du Bourg, walk along the square and then the cemetery via Rue du 11 Novembre.
Continue on the left and enter the woods via the path at the end of the Grand Chêne residence. You will then find the Espace Matisse car park in the Bois de Soyaux (S/E).

Pays d'Angoulême Tourist Office: +33 (0)5 45 95 16 84

(5) The caves in Entreroches and Recoux were inhabited by prehistoric humans during the Neolithic period, from 5000 to 2000 BC (weapons and tools have been found).
A Celtic oppidum (fortified village) existed in Recoux. The Romans left traces of their occupation in the Font Noire valley.

(6) The hamlet of Antornac occupies the north-eastern part of the commune, bordered to the west by the Recoux plateau and to the east by the Soyaux moors. In the centre of the hamlet is a modest archway known as the Porte Saint-Martial, which is thought to have marked the boundary of a religious building.

(9) The Logis de Montboulard, a large private property isolated in the middle of the woods, has been known since the 12th century. It was owned by the important Bourdin family for more than two centuries. The manor house and outbuildings have now been converted into guest rooms and rural lodges.

(S/E) Completely rebuilt during the 11th century and recently restored, the Church of Saint-Matthieu, located in the old village, is one of the earliest Romanesque churches. It has a very sober rectangular façade. Saint Martha, Saint Mary, Saint Mary Magdalene and Saint Lazarus are carved in bas-relief on the wall of the south transept.